Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.

Tayyab Torres Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Kimball Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

slightlymad22 Continuing my plan to watch every Mel Gibson movie in order, I come to Tequila SunrisePlot In A Paragraph: Mac (Gibson) is a drug dealer who wants to go straight. His old and best friend Nick Frescia (Kurt Russell) is now a cop who is assigned to investigate him and his friendship with a Mexican dealer named Carlos, who the police believe is coming to town to meet with him.him. Both men fall for Jo Ann (Michelle Pfeiffer) a restaurant owner. It was actually an effort to get through this movie. Dull, bland, uninteresting and just boring. I actually contemplated turning it off on several occasions. All of the cast look good, but when they appear bored with it all. There is a good idea in Tequila Sunrise, but it just doesn't work. At least not for me. Tequila Sunrise ended the year the 26th highest grossing movie of 1988 with a domestic gross of $41 million.

LeonLouisRicci A Trio of Attractive Movie Stars and an Award Winning Writer, Robert Towne, who also Directed, serve up this Lifeless, Confusing, and Boring attempt at a Neo-Noir that is Pretty Looking, but also Pretty Unremarkable.It's Flat and Frustratingly Flaccid as it shows itself to be a Hollow Hollywood Picture making Love to Itself and Failing to Reach a Climax for its Audience. The Money Shot is there but Fallow.Mel Gibson comes off as Second Best, after Kurt Russell in the Character/Acting Department. Michelle Pfeiffer is Surprisingly Robotic in Appearance on Screen despite having some Clever Dialog but Fails to Enhance the Film to any Degree.Overall, a Disappointing Movie despite the Personnel Involved. J.T. Walsh Plays a Convincing Enough Slimeball Law Enforcement Type, but Raul Julia Shouts His Rants as if Everyone is Hard of Hearing. He's so Over the Top it's Cringe Inducing. Average at Best.

aharmas Robert Towne knows how to write. "Chinatown" is just as perfect as a screenplay can be, coupled with great acting, it's sublime. "Tequila Sunrise" is a reflection of the 80's, and it's a bit dated because one doesn't tend to think of this period as "noir", but it's a terrific piece, and it works because of the terrific group of actors who give it their best. Towne is not Polanski, yet his effort is commendable.At the heart of the drama is a trio of lovers who don't quite know what the other one is doing. Gibson appears to be trying to get out of the business, but his ties are too strong to just walk away. Russell plays a childhood friend who now must follow the rules of his chosen profession, and in the middle is a woman who is not quite sure what to believe and ultimately choose, or does she? Pfieffer is amazing in that role. If you can't be satisfied with that trio, here comes the inimitable Raul Julia as the oily and showy Mexican character who is even more of a puzzle than the relationship between the woman and her two suitors.Following the structure of noir films, we see events taking darker and unexpected turns, and though the ending might be seen by some as a deviation from the formula, we are willing to let it go because of the intense chemistry between the leads. Maybe the tribute to genre deserves an unexpected turn itself. In the end, audiences might feel just fine with the end product.

Scarecrow-88 One of only five films directed by reputed writer Robert Towne (Chinatown), has some handsome stars (Kurt Russell, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Mel Gibson) to photograph in the striking location of Manhattan Beach, California. The story is truthfully fluff. A difficult relationship develops between restaurateur Pfeiffer and two buddies since high school, Russell (cop) and Gibson (drug dealer). Russell is a charmer with slicked back hair and a cocky bravado. Gibson is a tender-hearted softie pining for Pfeiffer; he's a good father who has attempted to go legit selling equipment and parts. Gibson spends time at Pfeiffer's successful Italian restaurant, hoping he might be able to eventually score a date. But Russell, working from the intense surveillance of DEA agents (led by the late, great JT Walsh), having bugged her restaurant, listening to conversations between Pfeiffer and Gibson, will beat his pal to the punch, seducing her before he even gets a chance. As this romantic melodrama commences, Pfeiffer instead falls in love with Gibson, even after all the dangers that might undermine their relationship like his Mexican drug partner (played by the usually excellent, late Raul Julia; Julia just steals the film, with his effortless charisma, once he emerges as the drug supplier masquerading as a Mexican Federali) appearing surprisingly (unbeknownst to the hapless Walsh, often considered foolish, with Russell often just emasculating him) and serious prison time if Gibson's caught by the DEA. Russell's character, working in concert with the DEA who seem to always botch any attempt to catch Gibson (and ultimately Julia), is placed in quite an emotional and professional quagmire…if he does his job correctly, his pal must go to prison and risk losing Pfeiffer in the process, but if he doesn't, it will detrimental to his law enforcement career. Seeing Pfeiffer having to decide between Gibson and Russell makes for the film's central dilemma; the ladies might understand how difficult it would be for her to choose. Russell is comfortable as the smooth operator, self-assured and confident at what he does (and he's damn good at catching criminals), with Gibson certain to make the girls swoon as a gentle divorcée longing for Pfeiffer but tied up in his business with Carlos (Julia) which could ruin any chance at happiness. Love triangles in these types of Hollywood romantic dramas are commonplace, but this was 1988 and Tequilla Sunrise has three bonafide stars as the leads. Towne was fortunate to get these three right when they were hot. It is a testament to Julia that he could walk away with the film considering the talent involved. I think the ending, which says that love conquers all even though it appears Gibson's going to jail (and should, to tell you the truth…), didn't quite wash with me, but I enjoyed how Russell grins in defeat accepting surrender when he realizes Pfeiffer is totally gaga for his pal. Considering Towne wrote this, you'd think there would be some meat on the bones, but this is all about star power; this kind of movie is more of a star vehicle and it seems Towne purposely avoided too complex a plot, instead opting to let his cast woo us with their talent (and looks). That sunset conversation between Russell and Gibson on the swingset is a showstopper of photographic beauty (the sunlight just bathes them, with us seeing just the silhouettes of Gibson and Russell as the talk about Pfeiffer and their dilemma).